The Chicago Bears are two games away from knowing their 2023 NFL draft fate. If they lose to Detroit and Minnesota, they hold at least the #2 overall pick with a chance at #1. If they win one, they drop to 4th and 7th if they win both. Many fans already have their hearts set on the Bears holding one of the top two spots. That would mean GM Ryan Poles get to do what the Bears haven’t done in the first round since 2003: trade down. It makes logical sense. They’re a rebuilding team. They have more roster holes than draft picks capable of filling them. More picks equal more opportunities to land young studs.
The difficult part is enticing other teams to move up. To do that, the Bears require bait. It has to be a quarterback in almost every scenario involving top five trades. Teams will always move up if they think they’re landing a future star quarterback. For that to happen, the players themselves must contribute to the hype. Poles and the Bears brass are probably happy right now after watching the Sugar Bowl. Alabama quarterback Bryce Young put on a show to close out his career, throwing five touchdowns on just 21 passes to crush Kansas State.
Young’s exclamation point is good for the Chicago Bears.
It almost guarantees he will go in the top three picks. Despite questions about his size, every other part of his game checks the box of a future NFL starter. It will be stunning if Houston doesn’t take him #1 overall. Now try to imagine if Chicago ended up with #1 and Houston fell to #2. Suddenly other teams would realize they have a shot at Young and might pay through the nose to get him. Poles could get a king’s ransom to move out of that spot. The next step is getting strong performances elsewhere.
CJ Stroud is the other big name to watch. The Ohio State quarterback will take on Georgia this weekend. It would elevate his stock even further if he could have a strong performance against the defending national champions. So even if the Chicago Bears end up with the # 2 pick, teams would still be willing to move up for his services too. That doesn’t include Will Levis of Kentucky, who might be the most talented of the three. A strong showing in the scouting combine and pro day circuit would likely boost him into the conversation too.
The Bears must do their part by ensuring they hold one of those picks.